A Hitman's Legacy
by Echoing Fantasy
Summary: Tsuna was merely curious. But the more Reborn talked about it, the more that curiosity turned to need, and the more he wanted to learn. And so Reborn taught him, and he learned.


**New AN: **I was combing through my old fics and ran across this one. I remembered how much people really loved this story, so I'm reposting it. This and a handful of others will be tossed up here simply because they aren't as cringe-worthy as my other old writing (some of which I will rewrite and repost at later dates). I did a bit of a touch up here, edited some slight things, but for the most part its still the same. Hope you guys enjoy it.

**Old A.N. – **A little something that came up after listening to Cold's _When Angels Fly Away _and System of a Down's _Soldier Side. _

* * *

_A Hitman's Legacy_

He was merely curious.

He had seen it often enough; every time Reborn brought it out to point at him and demand something Tsuna found his eyes straying to it. As a child, Reborn had threatened him with it, made Leon transform into it so he could shoot those annoying Dying Will bullets at Tsuna. Later, once the curse was broken and Tsuna got a real taste of what Reborn looked like in action – a taste that left his palette sizzling and burning like charcoal – he began to get curious. His curiosity frightened him; he had never wanted anything to do with this world before, and he had sworn that he would destroy the Vongola before he inherited the sins of his forefathers.

And so he denied his curiosity; he put off asking Reborn about it. He forced himself to move onwards, and protect his family. He burned away those that threatened his group, protected and sheltered those that came asking for sanctuary in his home. And the entire time Reborn was right beside him, firing that weapon as if it were part of his body. It made Tsuna curious. What did it feel like in the palm of his hand? Was it heavy? Light? Did it feel cold and unremarkable, or was it familiar and warm like Tsuna's gloves? The more the teen thought the more he wondered.

He began to get distracted; he would start off writing notes for one thing in class and by the end of it he would have filled a page full of questions and curiosities about that blasted gun Reborn carried. Three weeks of this was enough for Tsuna, who decided to bring the subject up late one evening, as they sat near the river and watched the others run around. It was a family picnic, and mostly everyone there was someone Tsuna knew. Tsuna had been playing around with Lambo and trying to catch him when he happened to glance over and saw Reborn sitting on the hillside, cleaning the parts of his gun. Just like that, he'd forgotten about Lambo, and focused on the gun again.

It was like a disease; the gun had never demanded his attention before, so why now? Why was he so curious about it? Straightening, he called Fuuta over and asked him to play with Lambo while he went to talk to Reborn about something. Back straight, Tsuna weaved his way through his over, moving towards Reborn.

He sees the hitman pause, obsidian eyes raising to meet his own. A smirk curves the hitman's lips, and the eyes move down again, the fedora covering their expression.

Tsuna takes a spot beside the hitman, staring out at the group while he waits for the words to come to him – or for Reborn to speak, whichever comes first. Luck appears to be with him however, because Reborn seems to have some sort of idea why he's there instead of off chasing Lambo.

"You've been distracted in your studies lately, Dame-Tsuna. Any reason why?" A loud _click _is heard as he puts another part of the gun back together, carefully examining it afterward to make sure everything is aligned. Tsuna once again finds his eyes straying to the gun, wondering how Reborn knows what every piece does and where it belongs. Is it like a jigsaw? Or does it actually take knowledge? The curiosity gets worse.

Chewing on the inside of his lip, Tsuna decides to go for broke rather than beat around the bush. Reborn likes honesty, after all. He respects _that,_ if nothing else. "What's it like?"

Another _click; _Reborn pauses, the gun between them, pointed up and held in a single hand, the black eyes peering through the gun to Tsuna. "What's _what_ like, Dame-Tsuna?" the hitman asks, never taking his eyes off of his student. His tone is gentle, and yet somehow Tsuna knows that he's facing a viper here; deadly and all-too-willing to use its poison on the nearest thing that irritates it.

"The gun. Is it hard to handle?" With the initial question out of the way, there is a sudden sense of _openness _and _truth _between the two that has only been felt once in a blue moon since the coronation. Reborn continues to watch him, waiting for a sign of weakness. Tsuna continues to watch Reborn, determined to get answers and prove that he is able to protect his family, be it with gauntlets or guns. It seems like an eternity, but at last Reborn smiles, a _real _smile, and lowers the gun, flipping it around and offering it handle-first to Tsuna. Even though it's only half-formed, the other pieces scattered in the grass around Reborn, Tsuna can tell that the weight will be the same.

"Try it yourself, Dame-Tsuna." Reborn orders, in a tone that for once isn't hard or cold, instead it sounds almost _proud _and welcoming_. _Tsuna reached forward, and grabs the gun by the handle, unsure of where to put his fingers. Reborn's hands cover his and maneuver his fingers to the proper position, and then pull back.

It's heavy; the weight is equal if not more than Gokudera's arm-gun. It's also awkward and blockish, too large for Tsuna's hands. Part of Tsuna feels embarrassed and stupid for asking about it; but another part of him insists he ask Reborn his questions.

He hands the gun back, and then asks, "How do you handle it? It feels so awkward."

A chuckle from Reborn; the man is amused apparently by his lack of ability with guns. Out of the corner of his eye, Tsuna can see Gokudera observing them with something like caution – and respect. He'll have to explain later, he thinks, lest Gokudera get the wrong idea and suddenly think he's apprenticing himself to Reborn.

"It may feel awkward to you, Dame-Tsuna, but it isn't the same to me. I've handled this gun my entire life; it was my first one." Reborn goes back to putting the gun together, apparently not minding that his student is watching him like a hawk watches a mouse; his hands move slower over the parts, put them together in a way that shows how everything goes together.

"And it's still intact? It still works?" Tsuna is amazed; he always assumed guns broke over time and had to be replaced. Reborn nods, and puts the final part into place.

"If you care for a gun properly, it will last a lifetime, Dame-Tsuna. Remember that."

And Tsuna does.

* * *

The second time they discuss guns is at Tsuna's house one night two weeks later. Reborn still lives within the Sawada residence, and still sleeps in a hammock by Tsuna's bed. One night as Tsuna is putting his finished homework aside, Reborn stands up and moves to the other side of the table, pulling out the twin guns he carries and setting them on the table. One he pulls apart, spreading the pieces out; the second he leaves as is. Tsuna watches silently, the feeling of curiosity back again, as well as a feeling of yearning.

When all the pieces are out, Reborn looks up and orders, "Identify and name the pieces you can."

Tsuna is only able to identify the chamber, bullets and barrel. Everything else he knows next to nothing about. Reborn smirks as he identifies the pieces, and pushes those parts towards him. The rest, he holds in front of him, ordering them to where they resemble where they would be in the gun. He then proceeds to give Tsuna a history lesson on the gun he holds, a semi-automatic CZ75 original; Tsuna absorbs the information silently, asking a question here and there and tucking the answers away for later. He doesn't understand why he suddenly wants to know so much, especially considering he uses gloves to fight like the First. Regardless he listens, and by the time the lecture is over he knows more about the guns Reborn carries than anything else, with the exception of his own gloves.

They spend the entire night like that, talking about the guns and the pieces and parts of it. By the early morning hours, Tsuna can successfully put the gun back together without any mess-ups, and Reborn is smiling. By that time Tsuna is an hour late for school, but Reborn pulls some strings and Tsuna is excused.

Tsuna spends the rest of day silently writing and drawing the machinations of the gun, and when lunch comes his hands move in a flurry as he imagines where each piece goes and what it does. Gokudera watches him silently, and for once offers no comment.

The next two weeks Tsuna spends almost all his time with Reborn; Reborn for once is patient and calm, letting Tsuna ask his questions and giving full answers. He teaches Tsuna everything there is to know about the guns he wields, and even those he doesn't. At school, Tsuna dedicates an entire notebook to the study of the guns, never noticing Gokudera's normally loud self growing quiet, or the fact that Yamamoto is more serious than normal.

At the beginning of the third week, Reborn wakes him up in the dead of morning and throws some clothes at him. "Put these on and come with me," He orders, and then vanishes downstairs. Tsuna, recognizing that something has changed again, puts the clothes on and follows his tutor downstairs. Reborn is dressed in a white button up shirt and black pants with a set of holsters loaded with guns over his shirt. He also carries a shotgun in his left hand. Silently, the two leave the house and head out deep into Namimori forest, on the outskirts of town.

It is there that Reborn shows him how to shoot.

First the CZ75; he hands one to Tsuna and keep the other himself. He shows the boy how to load the gun properly, and then drops the hammer and fires. A loud _crack _is heard as the bullet finds its spot in the tree. "That is your target." Reborn says, pointing to the white spot on the tree where a piece of bark once was. "When you can hit that with every bullet in the chamber, these lessons will stop." And he means it, just like he means everything else. Reborn uses up the last of the bullets on the trees nearby, showing Tsuna how to hold the gun and aim, and then sheaths his gun and orders Tsuna to stand in his spot.

The first shot nearly sends Tsuna on his ass; the recoil is sharp and harsh, but the _crack _against a nearby tree is even harsher. Tsuna realizes that he has indeed hit the same tree as Reborn, but his aim was high – the shot is a good three to four inches from his chosen target. Reborn smiles, that same smile he gave Tsuna when the boy took down Byakuran, and orders, "Try again."

When all the bullets have run out of that gun, Reborn takes it and sheaths it, and then brings the shotgun forward. Just like the CZ75, he shows Tsuna how to load it, and then fires on a new tree a few feet farther than the original target. And just like before, the bullet connects, and Reborn tells him that once he's able to hit the target with all his bullets, the lessons will stop. And then he hands the shotgun to Tsuna.

The recoil is even worse here than it is on the handgun; Tsuna _does _get knocked on his ass, but also feels something in his shoulder go numb as the butt of the gun connects to it. Reborn helps him up, checking his shoulder as he does so. "It's only a bruise. You didn't pop it out of place." Somehow, it isn't as relieving as it should be, but Tsuna doesn't argue and takes the gun up again. This time he knows how to avoid the recoil, and manages to get two of the bullets to hit the mark. He's getting better.

When all the bullets are used up, Reborn takes the gun and they go back home as silently as they came. Tsuna is ordered to go in first, and is promptly greeted by Nana, who demands to know where he was so early in the morning. Tsuna, caught off-guard, tries to tell her that he's been out with Reborn, only for a large hand to settle over his mouth.

"My apologies, Mama, Tsuna was out with me this morning. I was giving him running lessons." The smile he gives Mama is confident and sure, and despite the fact that neither he nor Reborn are wearing running clothes, his mother accepts it and goes back into the kitchen to make breakfast.

Somehow, Tsuna knows that she knows the truth of what they were doing, even if she won't say it.

He changes clothes and eats breakfast, and then goes out to where Gokudera and Yamamoto are waiting for him. Silently they walk, Tsuna rubbing his shoulder as he walks alongside them, ignorant of the way both boys' eyes follow the movement.

Gokudera is the first to speak. "You've been firing a gun, haven't you?"

Tsuna, unsure whether Reborn would allow him to tell Gokudera, cautiously nods. Gokudera sighs through his nose and looks away. Yamamoto seems disappointed. "Why? What's wrong?"

This time it is Yamamoto who answers. "Well, you said you swore you would destroy the Vongola before inheriting your ancestor's sin, right? And lately, you've been obsessed with guns…" he trails off, but Tsuna doesn't need to hear the rest to understand what he means.

"It's not like that, honest! It's just…a while back, I suddenly got curious about them, and when I asked Reborn about it, he gave me an honest answer. I still have a lot more I want to learn…"

Gokudera is watching him silently, and it feels to Tsuna like he's being weighed, judged for something. Then the bomber nods, and moves to the bruised side, Yamamoto coming to take Gokudera's old spot. Out of his bag, Gokudera draws a small vial of what looks like hand cream. The teen carefully pulls Tsuna's uniform aside and smears some of the stuff over the bruise. The ache begins to fade, and Tsuna realizes what it is.

"Did you get that from Ryohei?" he asks, watching as Gokudera puts a bandage over the bruise and tucks the cream away.

"Yeah, back when we went to the future, I had him show me how to make it. I always keep one with me, just in case something goes wrong. The bruise will be gone by tomorrow. What gun were you shooting when you got it?"

And suddenly its just like Reborn all over again; Gokudera talks to him about the guns he knows about, including the one he wears, and gives Tsuna tips about the shotgun and the handgun, even offering him a different way of aiming. As the day concludes, Tsuna can't help but feel like something in him is changing, shifting to fit this part of his life in. There's no doubt in his mind that he will never use a gun, but if there is ever a case where his gloves and Flame can't handle the situation, he now has knowledge of a weapon that _can. _

He expects Gokudera to go home, but the gunner follows him all the way to his house, where he confronts Reborn up in his room and asks to be let in on the training sessions in the morning. Reborn weighs his options, but gives his permission in the end. The next morning, the pattern repeats, except this time Gokudera is waiting for him alongside Reborn outside. Just like before, the three guns are loaded, and Tsuna is made to shoot his target. Gokudera joins him, taking up the second gun and taking down the target with little to no effort at all. It's frightening, but Tsuna doesn't find it particularly surprising. Gokudera was raised in a mafia family after all, and he has a gun as a weapon.

For the next three weeks, this goes on. Dawn is dedicated to shooting practice, morning is dedicated to school, and evening is dedicated to studies. Somehow Tsuna finds himself able to balance the mix, and after a point he begins to look forward to the mornings, when he can shoot his troubles away. His aim is getting better; he has taken down five of the six targets set up for him. Gokudera is betting that within the next week he will be a master of the handgun, and maybe another two weeks before the shotgun is over.

This is nice, but Tsuna wonders what he will do then. This surely isn't just a phase, something that he wants to try for the sake of being cool – it's something that _needs _to happen, just like he needed to learn how to master his gloves. The only difference is that the lessons with the guns are quickly coming to an end. And what will happen then? Will Reborn and he go back to being their normal selves? The idea sends a jolt of pain through his chest.

Later that evening, he talks to Reborn about it. Reborn stares at him the entire time he talks, although it isn't the usual _I'm-surrounded-by-idiots_ stare the teen is used to getting. _This _stare feels heavier, and far too cold. When he's done, Reborn blinks slowly and says, "If it was a _phase_, I'd have sooner _shot _you that let you touch my gun. What makes you think the lessons will stop once you've mastered the shotgun and my gun? There are plenty more types of guns out there, Dame-Tsuna, that you _haven't _tried." Reborn curls up a bit more on his bed, yawning as his eyes start to go glossy. Tsuna watches as his teacher begins to snore quietly, sound asleep.

He feels relieved that the lessons won't stop.

* * *

After that, the lessons continue. Tsuna grows and becomes the leader of the Vongola. His reign is a peaceful one, peppered with especially violent battles caused by those who would try to take the Vongola from him. His Guardians and the Varia are loyal, and follow his orders just like they did when he was a young boy. He marries Kyoko and together they produce two sons, both strong and kind like their parents. Reborn tutors them too, and Tsuna soon becomes used to the sounds of his offspring screaming and Reborn's gun going off at all hours of the day.

The years slowly go by, but all too soon Reborn passes his hundredth birthday, and then his hundred and thirty-first, and he still has yet to die. His hair is grey, and there are some wrinkles on his face near his eyes and his lips, but he is still the same man Tsuna met all those years ago when he was fourteen. Tsuna continues to send him out on missions, and he continues to fulfill them.

Until one day, he doesn't come back.

Tsuna knows what it means, and just like when he was a boy, he goes at out at the predawn hours to search for the body. And just like before, Gokudera and Yamamoto accompany him.

His body is in a warehouse, the site of his latest mission. The Don he was hunting is dead, strung up by his own tie. Reborn lays silent not too far away, body utterly pristine, hat on his head and gun in his hand. Tsuna carefully gathers his tutor in his arms and walks away, leaving Gokudera and Yamamoto to set the building to blaze as he walks off.

Even as he sheds tears for the man he had called friend and teacher, he remembers the words of long ago, and can't help but smile at them.

"_Reborn?" A young, sixteen year old Boss looks over at his tutor, who is busy polishing his guns. A grunt is his answer, but there is no doubt in Tsuna's mind that he's paying attention. "How old do you think you'll live to be?"_

_Reborn looks up, his grin sharp and his eyes sharper. "One hundred thirty-one."_

"_Huh? Why that number? Why not a hundred and thirty?"_

"_Because, Dame-Tsuna, any less and I wouldn't be considered a man. I plan to go down fighting, and one-hundred and thirty-one is just old enough to be considered the oldest and greatest hitman of my time." He gives the gun one last polish, then puts the pieces back together. "When that happens, these guns are yours. You know that, right?"_

"_Mine?" Tsuna's eyes are wide, his jaw slack. "Why me?"_

"_Because, insolent student, you are the only other person besides myself that has shot one. You are the only one I trust to keep them alive and warm." _

"_Alive?"_

"_So long as a gun has an owner, it is alive. Once it stops having an owner, a gun is as dead to the world as the owner is." Reborn taps the gun against his temple, smiling. "Remember that when I die, Dame-Tsuna, and only give this gun to those you consider worthy."_

Ones he considers worthy…it will take a bit of time.

* * *

Sixty more years pass, and much like his teacher before him, Tsuna ages past his hundreds. Much like his teacher before him, he has wrinkles and grey hair, but continues to lead the Vongola.

And then one day, his youngest son asks him a question.

And that question makes him smile, because it's the same question he asked all those years ago, when he was fourteen and curious about his teacher's weapons. And so, just like his teacher, he hands the gun over, and says, "Try it for yourself."

His son grasps it, awkward, and Tsuna remembers his own first time, the weight of the gun, and the blocked shape of it. But it was warm too, Tsuna recalls, and smiles.

"I don't get it." The boy looks up at his father in confusion. "How do you handle it? It's so awkward."

And so Tsuna shows his son, gives him the history of the guns, and then shows him how to shoot. And as his hundred and thirty-first year arrives, he calls his now gun-savvy son into his room and hands him two things. The first is the Vongola Ring, proof that this boy is now his successor. The second is Reborn's – his – guns.

"Listen to me, my son. Those guns have been with me for as long as I can remember. They were a gift from my mentor, Reborn."

"The number one hitman?" Even in his death, Reborn is legendary. Tsuna nods, feeling the weariness of death creeping up on him.

"Yes. He gave those to me the day he died, and now I'm giving them to you. But there is a condition. You must take care of these guns, for without an owner a gun is as useless as the owner, and just as dead. You must keep the gun alive and warm, and you must go down fighting when you die. Do not hand the guns over to just anyone – make sure they come to you and ask, just as you asked me and I asked Reborn, how to handle a gun."

His son nods, eyes wide. Tsuna hands the guns over, and then picks up the latest mission – his _last _mission, and goes out. His Guardians are all dead; he is the last of the Vongola Tenth _famiglia. _ His son watches as his father leaves the manor, not knowing that come morning Vongola Decimo, Sawada Tsunayoshi, will be dead.

The fight is over quickly; outnumbered and out maneuvered, Vongola Tenth goes down with one final blast of flame, incinerating the building he's in and bringing it down on his enemies. They die with him.

His body is found the next morning by his son and his Guardians. In honor of his father, his son does not bury him in Italy's cemetery, instead burying him out back alongside his Guardians and Reborn, feeling that somehow, he is doing right.

* * *

"_Idiot student, what took you so long?" _Reborn smacks a fourteen-year-old boy as he runs through a field of flowers where his family is waiting. _"We've been waiting here practically forever." _

"_Jyuudaime!" _His right-hand-man, a fourteen-year-old boy as well, leaps up and runs over to hug him as the rest of the Guardians – also children - follow suit. Even Hibari is here, looking as mean as ever.

"_Haha, did you get everything squared away, Tsuna? Let's head home, yeah?" _Yamamoto asks, reaching out to gently grasp Tsuna's shoulder in friendly contact. Gokudera bristles, and immediately begins bellowing about how inappropriate it is to touch the boss.

Tsuna makes eye contact with Reborn. The hitman nods, a proud smile on his face, and then aims one of his guns into the air and fires it.

"_Alright you lot! Move out. We're going home, this time for __**good. **_" Reborn bellows, and the group bunches together like old times, moving steadily towards their new home.


End file.
